Modesto has plenty to offer, but the price of admission usually comes with traffic, sky-high rent, and a calendar that fills itself.
If you want the upside of Modesto without the daily grind, the answer is almost always a good suburb. The catch: not every suburb is worth the move.
So we ranked them. Using Saturday Night Science, we pulled the numbers on every place within commuting distance of Modesto: incomes, home prices, unemployment, schools, the works. The result is a no-nonsense ranking of where you actually want to live.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 best suburbs to live around Modesto for 2026:
What’s the best suburb of Modesto? Ripon ranks as the best suburb of Modesto for 2026 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of Ripon, you’re probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 Modesto ‘burbs better than the rest–but first, a bit about our methodology.
Feel free to check out some more reading about California:
The 10 Best Modesto Suburbs To Live For 2026
/10
Population: 16,201
Median Income: $133,380
Unemployment Rate: 2.7%
Poverty Rate: 5.4%
More on Ripon: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Ripon is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Modesto area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome Ripon.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $133,380 a year, which is the highest in the Modesto region. And only 2.71% are out of work. Homes average more than $682,800 each.
/10
Population: 96,966
Median Income: $121,119
Unemployment Rate: 5.5%
Poverty Rate: 7.8%
More on Tracy: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Tracy is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Modesto for 2026.
It ranks 3rd for incomes in the area and only 5.35% of residents lack insurance, good for 10th best.
/10
Population: 89,043
Median Income: $97,055
Unemployment Rate: 5.8%
Poverty Rate: 9.5%
More on Manteca: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Here in Manteca, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the Modesto metro area.
The bad side? Schools are more crowded, and the cost of living puts a large part of the city out of reach for most families.
But price is based on demand and a lot of people want to live in Manteca.
/10
Population: 35,052
Median Income: $126,421
Unemployment Rate: 9.0%
Poverty Rate: 7.1%
More on Lathrop: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
Lathrop ranks as the 4th best suburb of Modesto for 2026.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Lathrop and the schools are some of the best around.
/10
Population: 24,693
Median Income: $93,650
Unemployment Rate: 5.7%
Poverty Rate: 9.0%
More on Patterson: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Coming in as the fifth best is Patterson.
Patterson gets kudos for having the 8th most expensive homes in the Modesto area, where houses sell for an average of $509,809. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
/10
Population: 25,166
Median Income: $87,966
Unemployment Rate: 8.6%
Poverty Rate: 12.8%
More on Riverbank: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Riverbank is proud of its 6th place finish on this list. And here’s why.
Most residents have great jobs and the unemployment rate sits at 8.62%.
According to online reports, Riverbank is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Modesto area, meaning you need to get in soon.
/10
Population: 72,502
Median Income: $82,995
Unemployment Rate: 8.4%
Poverty Rate: 11.3%
More on Turlock: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Turlock.
Turlock schools are some of the best in the region, and crime is really low. The cost of living makes it a lot more desirable for many families, especially first-time home buyers.
And, it’s only 12.1 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
/10
Population: 7,451
Median Income: $81,467
Unemployment Rate: 5.8%
Poverty Rate: 8.8%
More on Escalon: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Escalon is growing quickly, and for a good reason. Crime is far below average, and most residents are gainfully employed. Even the cost of living is reasonable.
A solid 6.35% of people lack insurance, good for 12th in the area.
/10
Population: 7,648
Median Income: $91,557
Unemployment Rate: 5.5%
Poverty Rate: 13.9%
More on Hughson: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Is ‘Everything Better In Hughson?’
Almost.
It placed 9th on our list thanks to the fact that it’s really expensive to live here, but the schools are great, so you get what you pay for in that regard.
/10
Population: 23,194
Median Income: $83,091
Unemployment Rate: 10.2%
Poverty Rate: 14.8%
More on Oakdale: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
And rounding out the top ten for 2026 is Oakdale.
This city is far above average in every category, and the best part? It’s far more affordable than the other cities listed above. So, you get a big bang for your buck here.
Methodology: How We Determined The Best Suburbs Around Modesto for 2026
Figuring out the best suburbs around Modesto was simple. We used Saturday Night Science to find things people like about living in the suburbs and then locate the suburbs with those things.
We analyzed the newest American Community Survey data for 2020-2024 to research each suburb. We decided upon the following criteria:
- Low unemployment rate
- High median household incomes
- Population density (lots of things to do)
- High home values
- A lot of college-educated people
- Low poverty
- High rate of insured families
We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Modesto.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 6,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 17 suburbs to evaluate around Modesto.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 17 in each category, where 1 was the “best.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality-of-life index.
Finally, we crowned the city with the best quality of life index, the “Best Suburb near Modesto.” We’re lookin’ at you, Ripon.
This result may differ from our state-wide data as we did not include commute times and crime for this analysis to allow for a more extensive selection of suburbs.
We updated the data for 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the best Modesto suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Summary: Welcome to the Best Modesto ‘Burbs of 2026
We said it once, and we’ll say it again–life in the big city isn’t for everyone. At least not all the time.
The best suburbs of Modesto are .
So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like Modesto but don’t want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might be for you.
For more California reading, check out:
Table: Best Modesto Suburbs
| Rank | City | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ripon, CA | 16,201 | $133,380 | $682,800 |
| 2 | Tracy, CA | 96,966 | $121,119 | $696,046 |
| 3 | Manteca, CA | 89,043 | $97,055 | $587,964 |
| 4 | Lathrop, CA | 35,052 | $126,421 | $646,011 |
| 5 | Patterson, CA | 24,693 | $93,650 | $509,809 |
| 6 | Riverbank, CA | 25,166 | $87,966 | $487,071 |
| 7 | Turlock, CA | 72,502 | $82,995 | $483,264 |
| 8 | Escalon, CA | 7,451 | $81,467 | $601,489 |
| 9 | Hughson, CA | 7,648 | $91,557 | $551,114 |
| 10 | Oakdale, CA | 23,194 | $83,091 | $557,020 |
| 11 | Gustine, CA | 6,133 | $59,532 | $423,281 |
| 12 | Stockton, CA | 322,326 | $79,907 | $431,328 |
| 13 | Newman, CA | 12,316 | $78,906 | $438,319 |
| 14 | Ceres, CA | 49,342 | $79,025 | $454,823 |
| 15 | Waterford, CA | 9,204 | $74,343 | $429,372 |
| 16 | Livingston, CA | 14,606 | $74,494 | $426,445 |
| 17 | Atwater, CA | 32,162 | $64,472 | $422,470 |
